Lyrical Nanoha Lost War Record
by ViandasJohnson
Summary: In the broken capitol of a lost Kingdom, members of Section Six slowly discover a hidden history and uncover a vicious plot which could rip the TSAB to pieces. And in another world, a young man slowly discovers a destiny all his own...
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Light and Truth

The Fallen Capital City of Pallordia Kingdom, on the World of Etolia.

Pallordia was widely known to be a very unfortunate Kingdom. Natural disasters occurred there more often than in other worlds, and it seemed like the threat affecting the other nearby worlds affected them much more seriously. For these malignant circumstances, some blamed the ruling family.

It was a common sentiment outside of the Kingdom that the Pallordia Blood Line was cursed, ever since a world shaking event years ago.

Erio supposed that he should not have expected a giant, sprawling place out of a Final Phantasm video game when he volunteered for a mission to inspect Pallordia Kingdom. In fact, he supposed he should have asked how they were being assigned to inspect such a place.

The place was, in all ways, shapes, and forms, a mess. He looked about, pitying the people who had to flee the place. It was most likely because of fierce isolationism that things got this way, and so Erio decided some of the blame rested on the King's shoulders.

Rubble littered the ground, the proud towers depicted in the books and guides all ruined and decrepit. The Palace? A chunk of the roof was missing, and the doors were wrenched off their hinges. The monsters that did this had even slung one of the huge doors right into a tall building, causing the whole thing to collapse.

The things that did this were called demons, mostly due to religious connotation and resemblance to certain figures in scriptures. They were not, in any way, a force from some holy book become real.

They were discovered by the Bureau to belong to a "World of Darkness", and had expanded outward to claim a place in these worlds by force. Their "World of Darkness" was basically just a planet almost entirely submerged in the Dimensional Sea's energies.

The effect this had on the demons was very easily seen. Apparently, force and violence were the only ways demons knew how to handle their problems. A very bizarre, frightening group, though some had decided to live peacefully with humanity.

They even liked the name the humans had called them so much they even addressed themselves as such now. On the ship leading to Pallordia, the guy who had told them about the area was one of them. When Erio asked why they liked being called demons, after the evil things in religion, the demon had answered simply.

"Because it makes humans want to fight us."

That bloodlust was evident in the scars of Pallordia Kingdom. Signs of battle permeated the area. Old bloodstains on the ground, sword devices resting on the ground. Thankfully, there were no dead bodies laying about.

Erio, however, did not want to know if demons devoured their dead human adversaries. He really hoped that they did not. He wanted to keep what lunch he had managed to eat on the way there in his stomach.

Another fact Erio had heard was that there were a lot of good Sword Devices made in this Kingdom, and that a craft like that died out like this was sad and ironic.

Nobody knew what happened to the majority of the Pallordian Citizenry, though an estimated 40% left the Kingdom a while back, just after the Scaglietti Incident and entered other worlds.

Despite this, there was no information on what exactly had happened there. Though it was generally agreed upon that whatever it was, it was beyond what Pallordia deserved. Though it looked to be the work of demons, Erio knew that it was rarely that simple.

The last King of the place was recorded as King Bradley Pallordia, a person who defined himself through dislike – borderline xenophobia – toward the TSAB, and pursuing solutions to the demon problems that plagued his world and its neighbors.

It was a bizarre contrast in traits. Xenophobia directed at one group, while others received benefits from his presence nearby. Was there just a grudge between King Bradley and the TSAB?

If so, Erio had to wonder why. He had seen some of the more morally dubious things the TSAB had done, mostly like a certain person named Jail's whole creation,

Precia Testarossa trying to reach Al-Hazard by any means necessary, Jail attempting to control an ancient Belkan Sankt Kaiser, and who knows what else would be coming out of the woodworks...

Apparently, whatever was out here was giving off a massive magical signature that almost matched that of a Lost Logia. Perhaps another factor in this depressing result was the Lost Logia which apparently rested there. Hayate was oddly urgent about this job. It was like she had prior experience there, but none of them had ever been there before.

Caro was using Friedrich to get an aerial view, while Subaru was looking through one of the nearby outposts. The sky above was seemingly always cloudy and lent an unpleasant air to the Kingdom. He had to consider, if this was the capitol, then the countryside would be at least twenty times worse.

Nearly every street corner had been modified so as to provide a defensive base, more evidence as to how bad it had gotten. Yes, if the demons were that fearsome, then that could definitely be a tell tale sign of it.

But as far as official information, the actual word on it was apparently classified! Whatever it was, it was pretty big, and apparently top secret.

Erio grimaced, "Well, with so many people hurt, I have no idea why they'd classify the whole thing. Don't people deserve to know what happened to the Pallordians? Are they really that hated?" In anger he stomped his foot on the floor.

And as a result, stomped on a section of floor that was not really that stable, sending him falling through the street into a sort of under street. He looked around. It looked like this area was in a bit better shape. Not as much rubble, though there was still a lot of fallen rocks from heavy impacts and Abyss Ion Spells cast up on the surface.

While Abyss Ion was a spell almost impossible for humans to cast, the demon race seemed to have the ability to cast it much easier.

Erio direly hoped he did not run into one down there. While there had been a peace agreement made by the TSAB between the rival forces, granting some land to the demon race, in a place like this he might run into one of the hanger ons from the campaign.

Looking around, he found the symbol of the Pallordia Family on one of the walls, seemingly branded on there for a random reason. Was this a special area or something? He tapped the symbol several times, and then thought he heard something.

For now, he ignored it. This area was branded with the symbol, and as he looked around, it did not exist anywhere else in the tunnel.

It was interestingly not smudged or destroyed in the least. He had heard the symbol was Decalogue, the Sword of Dark Light that all Kings of this country wielded.

There were some rustling sounds further down the tunnel, and then something began approaching, but seemed to be carefully moving about.

As if it was stalking Erio.

He readied his Device and Barrier Jacket, and called out, "Hey, is anyone down here? We're from the TSAB, investigating this area for big magical signatures. Anyone down here?"

He was not prepared for what occurred next. Six golden orbs flew out of some moss growing on the floor, and another two from a vine growing down the wall.

He had to wonder what all this was...

He had no time to think on it, though, as the orbs all exploded at once, throwing the teenage Mage backward, and hitting his head against a wall.

As he looked down, his vision blurring, he saw someone walk out of the darkness. He could make out no features, other than the faint outline of the sword symbol of the Pallordia Kingdom on the person's shoulder.

Was this...one of the Pallordians who had stayed around? Why was he attacked? What had he stumbled into? And with those questions in mind, Erio passed out.

He awoke in the base camp later, to see Subaru and Caro looking down at him, worried sick apparently, "Hey guys, did the plants attack you too?"

Subaru was incredulous. Did the hit against the wall mess with his head? She sighed, "No, but Caro was worried about you, just dropping down into those tunnels...so, do you know what happened down there?"

She did not want to believe something about plants attacking people, but she supposed she had heard weirder and seen stranger.

There had been the time with the cat and six rogue Mages that basically sealed the deal on that count.

Erio responded, "Its like I said. The plants down there attacked me. They generated some exploding golden orbs."

He could not make that up if he tried. And apparently there was someone else down there.

"And...there was someone down there. He walked out after attacking me, I think. He had the sword emblem on him."

Subaru was forced to concede that Assault Plants was more than just the title of a horrendous B-Movie, and decided to look into the story. It was almost definitely magic of some kind. Though for a plant to create a magical attack, rather than a Device...

But for someone's magic to generate not out of a Device, but out of a plant? And why would someone here attack Erio? If anything, a survivor of the Pallordia Kingdom would be desperate for help, not for a fight.

But if it wasn't a Pallordian, and rather some sort of demon or criminal, then that would make more sense.

There had been rumors of demons still hanging around, and treasure hunters of a distinct lack of scruples hanging around and trying to find the actual sword of the Pallordia Family.

Then that would mean this person would jeopardize their search in the near future, and in future TSAB missions there.

"Caro, make sure Erio is alright," she finally stated, "and ensure he heals fully. Head wounds can be tricky. I am going to look around."

She had to admit that, if the attack ruined Erio's Barrier Jacket, damaged his Device, and did as much to him as it did, then whoever it was might be a threat.

She circled the area at maximum speed a few times, but could not find anything, and when she passed mossy areas or overgrown patches of plant life, they did not open fire.

And with those thoughts in mind, she felt a subtle nudge as a telepathic link became active, it was Hayate, who had arrived at their main base. [Subaru, return to base for now. For now, we cannot afford to send anyone out alone.

And so she left to return to base, feeling oddly like she had been watched her entire time to and from the base. Their enemy, she decided, might as well have been all the plant life in the Pallordian Capitol City.

As Subaru left the area, three people walked out of the ruined chapel nearby.

One, a tall and handsome man carrying a rose, sighed, "Such a beautiful young maiden, oh, if only we could approach her..."

He carried himself like a warrior, had a sword type Device, and wore a black trench coat over a black shirt, slacks and boots.

Leaning against a wall was a brooding young man with blond hair, a scar over his right eye meeting a scar on his jawline, and of a more rough, lean look than his foppish ally.

"You do realize she is on the look out for the person that blasted that public servant, right? She'd punch that pretty little face of yours as soon as kiss it."

The near-parody of a bishonen almost dropped his rose, though he almost immediately picked it back up, "N-Not my face! Jagger, you're so mean, scaring me like that!"

Jagger chuckled a little, it could be some fun to poke at Jean. More fun than could be found in this dreary duty. 

Jean was about to shout when the third person spoke up, "Remember, we don't know how far her abilities were amplified by the cybernetic implants. We have to be careful and not directly engage until we learn the enemies strong points and weak points."

The new speaker was a rather withdrawn looking silver haired young man, who wore large, blocky glasses, and two long coats, one directly over the other, and both covered a black shirt, khaki pants, and boots.

Jagger nodded, "Good call, Kaoru. We'll wait for Master Saburo to return, given he has probably looked them over by now."

Jean sighed, "Its so loathsome...having to fight a pretty girl..."

Kaoru sighed, his allies were utterly bizarre, but nobody doubted Jean's capabilities. Yes, he was only serious in a fight once in a blue moon...

But when Kaoru saw the last time that blue moon occurred, he knew their employer made the right choices.

While the others in the main organization were away, it was up to them to hold the fort there.

And Kaoru did not want to let down the expectations of their leader. After all, his magic was of an extremely powerful sort...it would simply not do for him to make a poor show against police officers.

And while they were standing around, Saburo returned, seeming to climb right out of the ground, "I have tested TSAB's Ace, Erio Mondial, but it appears he was unable to detect me. Thus, our fight does not count, as he was ill prepared for engagement."

Saburo was a tall, tanned young man of a lean, muscular appearance. He wore a shirt with sleeves that reached half way down his arms and which was of a beige color, with the Decalogue symbol on the right shoulder area. His slacks had a number of green and red patches of cloth and he wore armored boots.

His stride and nature reflected a stoic though confident personality which enjoyed testing challenges and limits.

Jagger beamed, "Such is the wisdom of my Master." Jagger was, needless to say, extremely proud of his Master's capabilities. It had been about three years ago when Jagger requested that Saburo teach him how to use a similar Earth Magic style.

Saburo sighed, "I thank you for the praise, though I am undeserving such loyalty." And Saburo was convinced that there were better sorcerers in their organization who would be able to give Jagger a better education.

Jean asked, "So, what are we going to do next? We were instructed to hold the fort. If those TSAB Mages stumble into anywhere important, the King will be pretty pissed."

They all nodded at that. They would need to make a plan instead of just rushing in there. While they all had formidable abilities,

Saburo nodded, "Indeed, while The Gate was used to take that area out of here, we still need to make sure our home base is secure. Together, we will attack their base and force the young one to summon her dragon Voltaire, whereupon..."

Jagger looked down, "Then, I'll do my thing. Dragons are my specialty." Jagger supposed this was personal for him.

Subaru looked over the base as she walked through it.

Her meeting with Hayate basically confirmed that, indeed, someone of high magical power had attacked Erio. Most likely treasure hunters or criminals hiding from the law in Pallordia's Ruins. Such was incredibly disrespectful to a fallen power like Pallordia.

Though that apparently only one did that was cause for alarm. They would need to be careful out there and watch for surprise attacks. If the enemy could attack through plant life, then his range was virtually unlimited. There were even some grassy patches near the base and inside it in some places.

But it would do no good to simply be paranoid about it. They'd face whoever it was as they came.

A/N: And we're done. Please Review and PM me any questions. Just as an explanation, the bracket speech is telepathy, the time period is three years following the Scaglietti Incident. And just a fun game; spot all of the Shout Outs.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Of A Certain Make

Shuto supposed that, with his home town in the state it was, it would probably be expected of him to show a lot of sadness and mope around like the others.

But with his sister in town and almost constantly in danger, he needed to be constantly alert. And besides, angst just wasn't his style. It did not reflect well on his upbringing if he sat around moping all day!

Nearly two years ago, his home town of Aberlen was devastated by a huge explosion, shortly after Shuto's dad came home. Some people blamed his dad for what happened that day, something that pissed Shuto off to this day.

Most people did not want to piss off Shuto, mainly because he seemed intimidating. He was tall and built, quite muscular, but not too bulky. He had long black hair that had numerous downward spikes, and wore a black short sleeve shirt and rather torn up jeans. However, he had a boyish face that countered some of the frightening effect.

He had to grow up strong, or he would not be able to protect those people he found to be dear to him. Most of the others in town remembered how he was always in a hurry to get going somewhere, as if his blood was on fire.

The only thing that could piss him off more than someone insulting his dad was someone making moves on his sister and her friends. Which was currently the mistake Gridlav had made. Gridlav did this kind of thing a lot.

He made a lot of creepy moves on girls around town, and was never punished for any of the stuff. Apparently, as Shuto had heard one time, the man in charge around here said Gridlav was a capable member of some Guard or another, so they couldn't afford to lose his abilities.

Guy thought he could do as he pleased because he had strong friends and had strong magic. So as Shuto ran to stand between the girls and Gridlav, the man leaned back and grinned, "You really wanna get in my way? I'm with the guys rebuilding this shitty little town, so we've got a good amount of political pull around here."

Shuto supposed a guy like Gridlav should scare him more. The guy was covered in steel armor, his Barrier Jacket adding on several more plates to that. He seemed to have a single spiked steel helmet, and his hair reached almost to his shoulders, sectioned into dreadlocks.

Gridlav was about to ready his weapon, a voulge type Weapon Device when another goon from his organization called out to him, "Grid, we got a message from Vargas!"

Gridlav glared at Shuto, "Well, you got lucky today, I was gonna use Dusty Limit on you. Well, live on in fear of me, Shuto Ryuji, for one day, I will come and rescue that heavenly Mia from her devilish barbarian brother!"

Shuto glared daggers at Gridlav, taking on a stronger stance, "Run to your bosses, Gridlav..."

Gridlav started sweating, secret power or no secret power, he was freaking scared of that kid when he got mad.

And so Gridlav did indeed run off to report to Commander Vargas.

"Commander Vargas, here I, the great Gridlav, am. I wait patient and saint-like, for your orders..."

Gridlav, being his usual self, managed to make several of the Guard Soldiers behind him grumble in discontent.

One man whispered to his fellow soldier standing next to him, "Gridlav is such a drama queen...and a pretty smug little serpent too. I'd love to make it up higher than him and boss him around..."

But when Commander Vargas entered, those two shut up quickly.

Vargas was a different beast than Gridlav. Everything about him showed a serious personality devoted to the group's goals. In fact, sometimes, Vargas even frightened Gridlav with the actions the man took "for the good of the group."

As he walked down a set of stairs, his features came into view. He had a single scar running down the side of his face, he had a wild mane of black hair, and was muscled and in his prime at twenty five. He wore a rather medieval set of armor, but nobody dared to point out if it looked outdated or such.

The Guard in this area valued their lives far too much for that.

He was apparently a survivor of the Black Griswalde Massacre, where one prisoner broke out of the most formidable prison in the universe. Vargas had been in there as a prisoner, needless to say.

As he had told Gridlav once, the reason he was in there was because he once had a girlfriend. However, she was not very faithful to him, cheating on him with seven other men. Vargas had apparently went ballistic and killed them all.

While he regretted his actions, he never had to atone for them with his life, which Gridlav was thankful for, because it let Vargas promote him to Captain.

The only downside was that Vargas was fond of telling stories of his time in there. The stories were horrifying, in particular of the inhuman thing that had ripped through the place. Gridlav shuddered at the thought of something like that existing.

And that it could defeat someone as fearsome as Commander Vargas spoke of its power.

Vargas looked down at Gridlav, and said, "My orders are these. There is a sword coming to this little place, and you and I have been chosen to take it to our superiors in the City of Grandis, to the west of here."

Gridlav smiled widely, this was his big chance to get some good points in with the higher ups! "Oh yes, Commander Vargas! I could not pass up a mission like this if I wanted to!"

Shuto looked down at his hands. When he was younger, he beat a lot of older kids up for some really trivial things, but then his sister straightened him out.

As in, gave him a beating and let him know how it felt. She had made sure he did not end up one of those evil Guard members who were going around a lot of places nowadays. He had heard they were Pallordian in origin, a group from the next world over.

It was sort of hard to believe Pallordia might be behind such an evil group like this. They had actually done a lot of good, or so he heard.

Their town had little to no problems with those demon race guys, largely because they had no warriors. A lot of the demons only attacked those able to fight back.

He looked around at the walls near where he stood, and smiled. Not once had battle hit this place, and for that, he was glad. As bad as the explosion was, war was infinitely worse.

But he really doubted the demons were as bad as people said they were.

In fact, one of the oldest guys in town was a demon, and he was one of the nicest guys who Shuto ever knew...and who just happened to have taught him everything he knew about fighting. But with that, came a promise.

Never misuse your own strength. Always protect those who are dear to you. And Shuto would be nothing but a thug if he did not know the value of a promise!

He looked down from his usual hang out spot near the wall, and saw what looked like a caravan coming in on a road near the wood. Those were pretty rare, but every so often a trader came in. But the outside area of the town had a problem, namely feral dogs from the nearby City of Grandis.

They usually settled in the nearby woodland area, but occasionally came out to scavenge for food or to attack someone who looked capable of being said food.

Shuto decided to go and help. The poor old guy in charge of the caravan was terrified, and was trying desperately to keep his caravan under control. The horses in front were panicking and trying to escape, only for the tethers to hold them back.

Shuto rammed one of the bigger dogs, betting on it being one of the beasts in charge of the pack. He regretted it almost instantly, the creature ripping into his jacket and long sleeve shirt and reaching flesh easily.

He winced, and punched the dog in the nose, making it let go with a loud whimper.

The old guy seemed to look between the young man and the dogs, and said, "He might just be who I was looking for."

He had been lucky to be able to trick those Guard toadies, namely in that Vargas was not the commander in that area.

This young man had the bravery, self sacrificing nature and heroism to properly wield this blade. He had only heard rumors of its real nature, but it had been searched for by the Guard for a long time.

He used all of his strength to throw the sheathed blade to Shuto, and the boy managed to catch it. On a touch, he oddly knew it was some sort of Sword Type Device of a certain make.

It was not Pallordian, like the blades of the Guard he had seen. Nor was it of a Belkan nature. There were odd runes on the sheath, and by sheer instinct, he swung with it in a wide arc through the dogs, sending most of them crashing away.

One of the last dogs standing rushed at him, and he swung the sheathed sword at it, throwing the dog into the bramble bushes nearby. The downed mutts climbed back up, but all ran away.

For some reason, he really felt at ease with this sword in his hand. He had never trained with the sword, only with his bare hands, but he could feel somehow akin to it.

The old man said merrily, "Looks like I have found a good kid. I've heard that blade comes from Al-Hazard, its called Ragna Blade."

Ragna Blade, Shuto thought with a sigh as he looked the thing over, this was probably gonna end up in Gridlav's hands, or worse, Vargas. While Gridlav was a petty kind of evil, Vargas was responsible for the current state of affairs.

Now that Shuto had power, he needed to use it wisely. And for now, he knew next to nothing about it. But he could not leave things as they were. And that meant chasing the Guard out of town. He had to, for the sake of his sister and all those in the city bullied by the likes of Gridlav.

He ran off, deciding to see if this sword could get the town out of the situation. As he ran, he saw Old Man Grila, the demon that had taught him how to fight. Rumor had said Grila used to be someone incredibly scary, but he had "decided to rebel against the culture of force", and now lived out here.

Grila looked down at the sword and gasped in surprise, "I...I did not know that sword was around here...hurry inside, and let me explain things to you, before everything progresses too far."

Shuto was basically pushed into Grila's small hut, all he was allowed in the present state of the town.

Meanwhile, Gridlav was in the middle of a breakdown. They could not find the Ragna Blade anywhere, and if they could not find it, then the higher ups would see heads roll! The upper echelons of the Guard were all horrifying people who had much better magic than him.

Dusty Limit was great and all, but those guys were monsters! He'd estimate that, based on TSAB's scale, all of them were in the A's and above.

As he moped about, trying to look under every rock and behind every cranny, he bumped into a blond man he had never seen in town before. The man seemed to be wearing a traveler's cloak over rather torn black clothes. The guy suddenly glared back at Gridlav, hatred unfathomable present in that glare.

Gridlav let out a rather unmanly scream for help, "H-Help me, there's a really scary man here!" He had never felt such a terrible fright in his life. There was something terribly wrong about that guy...

The blond just chuckled and kept walking. "Not worth my time. Carry on, officer." Gridlav gulped, realizing a little too late he had soiled his pants. He made up his mind that, after all this was dealt with, he would see that blond dead.

Gridlav was about to deploy Dusty Limit against the man, but then he heard a soldier shout, "Sir, we have some information. Someone said they saw that kid Shoot or something carrying the Ragna Blade into town."

Gridlav's berserk button pushed, he wheeled around on his feet, ignoring his trousers for now in sheer rage, "Shuto! That brat has taken enough away from me already! He has taken Mia away, and now he tries to kill me! I will see that kid dead now!"

Gridlav knew that Shuto affiliated with that old devil, and decided to pay them a visit with six Guard soldiers. Today, he would claim the Ragna Blade and Shuto's life!

But first, he tried to find Grila's hut, and wound up lost in the process. He grimaced, maybe cruelly depriving the townsmen of better accommodations was not one of his better ideas, especially when every hut looked exactly the same.

Meanwhile, Grila began his explanation, "The Ragna Blade is a holy weapon, created years ago for the sake of defeating not just the more malicious elements in the demons, but also...a hidden darkness. Which has taken root in three places. Pallordia, the TSAB, and this very planet's government in the Capitol of Meremos."

Shuto looked astounded, and decided that, with so much happening, everyone was probably gonna be in danger, and that he had to get going soon. He had the only thing that might be able to handle this hidden darkness.

Grila looked outside, "It has even spread here. The Guard is not your only enemy. Beware of certain elements within the TSAB and the government here."

He nodded. Before he left, he had to say goodbye to his sister and aunt, back home. But his train of thought was abandoned as Gridlav apparently collapsed right into the house, opening the door. He mumbled, "Sword...give it back, please...Shuto...what did I ever do to earn this?"

Shuto ran over and began shaking the man, and the young man shouted, "You turned my home town into a dilapidated state, you made my sister cry, and you brought that Guard with you!"

Gridlav was released when Shuto heard something else outside. A slow, clapping sound. Grila looked surprised as Vargas slowly walked in...literally walking over Gridlav's body.

Gridlav moaned, "You are such a cruel person, Commander..." Vargas looked down at Gridlav and did not seem overly concerned.

"Shut up, worm. I think I am tired of sending the equivalent of goldfish crap out to tail someone or get something." Vargas, really, had nothing but disdain for that minion. He had no uses, his Chain was pathetic, and he had a sad, disgusting personality.

Shuto looked down, slowly drawing his blade, "He...was your ally. And you walked all over him, and then you insulted him. Even for Gridlav...he doesn't deserve to have his ally treat him like that!"

Vargas smiled widely, "Oh...and he draws his sword! This could get exciting! Yes, lets see, what happens next? Huh? Are we gonna fight? Are you gonna die? Oh yes, you're gonna die here, Shuto Ryuji..."

This guy was nuts, Shuto thought, but he was confident he could take him in here. He doubted Vargas could cast much magic in here, and the Ragna Blade might be powerful enough to handle him.

Grila had other ideas, "We will be leaving now, Vargas. Do report to your superiors you lost Shuto Ryuji, just like you lost the other Ryuji. Black Magic – Sudden Portal!"

Shuto was taken by surprise as he was pulled into a portal along with Grila. Vargas shouted after Shuto, "Damn you, Ryuji! Damn you to hell!"

They were suddenly outside the town, and Shuto had the urge to vomit. He would not travel by portal again in the foreseeable future.

However, another concern surged to the front. His sister was still in town, and Vargas was a lot more merciless than his fellows...

He started to run back inside, he needed to save them and make sure Vargas went down, and left the town for good! It was too dangerous in there now for anyone who might still dream...

He did think, as he ignored Grila shouting for him to wait, that this was all his fault. If he had just put the sword down after the fighting was done outside. No, he remembered his promise to use power responsibly, and by giving it to those monsters in the Guard, who knew what would happen.

And so, as he ran past the main shopping area and into the general area of the huts, his heart skipped a beat. Someone had blasted down all the huts in the area, and he saw Gridlav walking out of it with a wounded Mia on his shoulder.

He offered a small smile, "E-Even scum like me...can have standards..." He was barely keeping himself up, after having apparently been badly cut up all over the place.

That was when a shooting spell rushed out of the dust, the general shape like a wolf's head. It struck Gridlav and Mia and threw both of them backward.

Vargas walked out, his features sharper and more wolf-like. His ears had turned to somewhat wolf-like ears, his eyes golden and his hands turned to claws. He smirked madly, "This is my Dark Chain, Shuto Ryuji! Its called Werwulf! It lets me amplify my abilities many times over by transforming myself into a beast!"

Shuto glared at him and shouted, "Dark Chain? What the hell is all of this, Vargas? Aren't you supposed to be some kinda damn Guard? What kind of guardian would wreck a place like this?"

He bolted forward as Vargas fired another Grauwulf spell at him, and he slashed right through it with the Ragna Blade. The sword seemed to cut through magic very easily, and as Vargas continued firing, Shuto kept on cutting through the attacks.

He finally moved into melee and both men clashed incredibly quickly, Shuto keeping up with Vargas' abilities.

Shuto did not know how he found it so easy to use such a large sword, nor did he know how he was keeping up so adeptly with Vargas. It was like, the instant he touched the sword, he felt how to most successfully use the blade.

He moved the weapon in an arc to block a rain of blows from Vargas. This Dark Chain power was new to him, he did not know how Vargas could be fighting so effectively without the sword he used. Then it hit him.

Maybe the Dark Chain merged the sword into Vargas' body, and let him use his whole body as his Device. That would definitely explain the spells he had been slinging at Shuto.

Shuto struck forward in an overhead arc and was met by an uppercut strike by Vargas. The good thing about such a sword was the weight. Apparently, Vargas was having a hard time parrying it in this state. Maybe it did increase his speed and strength, this new form, but did it offer anything to his defenses?

If anything, the warping of the body probably made his endurance and defenses far more frail than they would be as a human being. Shuto pulled back slightly, seeing Vargas panting heavily. That counter block had taken quite a bit out of him.

And Vargas knew this too. He knew that his form was not suited for an enemy wielding a Zweihander type Device, least of all that infernal blade. He had unwisely disposed of a good weapon in the middle of his own, self admitted now, insanity.

Vargas scowled darkly, and shouted in full battle mania, "Rip Edge!" Both of his claws began to glow blood red and he attacked with both in a stabbing motion, red energy trailing backward.

Shuto met the attack head on with a slash from Ragna Blade, the sword beginning to glow blue, and he shouted, "Over Burst!" The close combat spells clashed, edge against edge. Sparks flew from Vargas' claws, and Shuto's sword.

Until finally, the sword slashed through, the sheer energy release causing an explosion that threw Vargas backward, unconscious and utterly defeated. And he thought to himself, _I am...sorry, milord, but it looks like I failed to get that weapon for you. You can have my life if you so desire._

Shuto picked up his sister on his shoulders, and started to run, accidentally forgetting Gridlav. He had to get out of here with her.

Grila waited near the entrance to the town, and he supposed that he should expect that kind of recklessness from Shuto. But before long, with the enemies they had now, the boy would need to learn the wiseness of retreating from an unwinnable fight.

As Shuto ran out, holding Mia on his shoulder, Grila could not help but be surprised at the turn of events. He had defeated a Commander Class soldier of the Guard, the group not even the demons could defeat fully.

But needless to say, the Captain Commander of this area would most likely not be pleased by this turn of events. The Captain Commander had much greater power than Vargas, that much Grila remembered of that man.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Under the Kingdom

Two hours later...

Hayate looked out from the window of her office, and considered the intel she had recovered already. The news of Erio being attacked, seemingly without reason, had angered her. She would find who had attacked her friend, and make sure they were brought into custody.

If they had such a unique magic style, then that likely meant they were more than a simple treasure hunter or escaped outlaw. Most likely, the person was a member of a larger group, and they were using Pallordia was their base of operations.

She had to look at the possibility of hostile residents of Pallordia. After all, King Pallordia had not been one of the supporters of TSAB, and if some of his servants were there, then that could mean they were trying to follow his wishes.

Or it could even mean the King was alive, somehow, and was possibly orchestrating something from the shadows. As far as information about his personality, some said that he was the exact type to do something like that.

Even with his kingdom devastated, he still might have the power of the Lost Logia they had detected there. The readings on that had only gotten stronger since they arrived. Were they somehow aggravating it?

She remembered being informed that the potential inherent in this one was frightening, much greater power present than anything previously recorded.

That was why she had made a wise investment in hiring guides, native Pallordians who had agreed to help TSAB. While they insisted that Hayate's forces not "defile" the main palace, their help in navigating would prove useful.

Hayate did admit their insistence and loyalty to the fallen kingdom was a little commendable. However, she knew that her forces would need to be careful out there. Should the forces involved in attacking Erio prove Pallordian in origin, then the guides might well switch sides.

The leader of the guides arrived to meet with her. He was a rather tall man wearing obscuring clothes, though she could see hints of an emblem near the shoulder area. He wore a strange turban like wrap around his face, except for near the eyes.

Perhaps he did not wish to be seen and identified and be known to other members of the Kingdom as a traitor or some such. "So, you are Colonel Hayate, the leader of the TSAB Operation here. My name is Sabo, I used to be a captain in the royal guard."

Hayate smiled a little, yes, he would do, "Hmm, so you made it pretty far up the totem pole. Can you tell me about the general way the King ran things?"

The man leaned back, and answered, "Hmm, King Bradley was a man who always seemed to be planning and helping his neighbors against the demon threat. He was, after all, in charge of the forces made for repulsing the invaders. But..."

The man seemed distressed by something, and Hayate asked, "Was something wrong with your king?"

The head guide answered, "Ten years ago, the King's son and daughter died. Poor young Luke was only six, his sister only ten. And then, following an assassination attempt, he sent his other son, Snowe away."

Hayate had to wonder. Snowe, one of the higher up generals was named Snowe, were they the same man? An image of the "Pervert General" flew into her mind, and she banished it almost immediately. She could guess why he got the name. His hair was literally as white as snow.

It was a birth defect, or so he said. This information cast a lot of what Snowe said into doubt. Hayate was genuinely surprised, "So, all this happens and your king can still lead a united force against the demons? How well, I wonder..."

"In most ways, the Demon Guard group functioned as more than just a defense against the demons. The people gathered in the organization also helped make stability in the Kingdom. His Majesty always wisely led us forward."

That genuinely surprised Hayate, this man suffered in many ways, and then he could still lead a force? Even if the King of Pallordia was still alive and their enemy, she had to respect him. Hayate supposed Demon Guard forming was a bit inevitable around there. The worlds were all in the same bandwagon, so of course they would have grouped together.

The man asked, "So, may I have your leave? I am...currently quite tired..."

He coughed once, and Hayate supposed the guy was injured in the fighting with demons, or with some sort of treasure hunter or escaped felon. The masked man left Hayate's office and informed his three fellow guides that they would be able to move out soon.

Erio was quite glad when he was able to get back up and get moving again. It would take a lot more than the magical equivalent of Night of the Triffids to keep him down.

However, he was very quickly exasperated when he saw Caro looking down at a gift box. These had been coming increasingly frequently in the last month.

Only signed by a person who identified himself as "J", for some reason nobody could ever catch the stalker in the act.

That he was targeting Caro made the whole mess personal for Erio. Caro was one of his most precious friends, and he would not tolerate some stalker frightening her.

But that the guy managed to send a present here, at Pallordia Kingdom, made Erio think a little about who could have sent it. Just who was J? And why was he so fixated on Caro? Either the guy was just plain frighteningly determined, or the stalker was from around there.

What was worse, he seemed to have dug up a lot of information on Caro's past to the point he knew about her tribe. One thing he sent her had been a letter containing countless "complements" on how fearsome her power was.

He did not get her heart at all. This "J" would really deserve a beating for making her stress and bothering her in this way. And pursuing them all the way to Pallordia was just overkill on the stalker's part.

However, there was no time right now for trying to find the guy. Apparently there would be a mission out to explore the underground roads. The guides seemed very strange, covering up a lot of their bodies in obscuring clothes.

Erio felt a very eerie chill as he, Subaru and Caro approached the sunken area where he had been attacked by "the plants". Of course, it was definitely a Mage somehow using the plants as his Device. The team all leaped down, the guide gingerly stepping down as if he didn't want to get too badly dusted up by the fall. A secondary guide leaped down without many reservations.

The two guides seemed to look at each other for a moment before moving on.

Everyone activated their barrier jackets, and prepared to venture into what appeared to be an under city. In contrast to the above city, the lower city looked almost in one piece, but nobody was there.

There was not even any evidence of fighting, and while some buildings were missing pieces, those pieces were absent. Everything was uncannily clean, so much so it became positively eerie to each of the people present.

It was like they were disturbing something ancient and not really meant to be messed with. The guide explained, "This area is called the Pallordian Undercity. Under here are shelters where the uninvolved combatants hid while battles with demons went on. It is a thoroughly unbeautiful place previously used as a catacomb."

Erio gulped, so people hid in what was essentially a re-purposed cemetery. That was just a gigantic recipe for a truly frightening haunting. Memories of supernatural shows and movies flew through his mind.

The guide looked over at Subaru, and said, "This place can be dangerous, so it is not really good for a beautiful person like you to be down here..."

She just sighed, "Yeah, yeah, lover boy, but I have a job to do down here...but clarify on the danger."

The guide replied, seeming honestly frightened himself, "Occasionally, there are trespassers down here who are out to try to find lost treasures of the Kingdom."

Subaru nodded, they would definitely need to be careful down here. If they wandered off too much, they could get lost, and become prey for treasure hunters or worse.

They decided to split up, and meet back at the area they had entered the undercity at, just in front of a huge chapel with broken windows. Caro went with Erio for safety and because she felt scared of the place, while Erio mustered up all his courage to make sure she was safe. The secondary guide went with them, apparently keeping close to Caro as well.

Subaru took the guide with her and looked down a long street filled with abandoned shops and several bars which rested at the end of the occasional alleyway. There was a whole feeling of death to the place, appropriate considering the origin of the undercity.

The guide seemed more frightened than the faraway Caro, and he whispered, "So, umm, Subaru, why don't we just look around from, oh, right here and say we took a better look..."

She retorted, "Don't be so scared. I'm right here, and I won't let anything happen to you."

The guide smiled under his mask, and outright shouted in glee, "Subaru, you are truly the most beautiful person in your whole unit!"

She heard something and put one hand over his mouth, "Hush, someone's coming." It sounded like steps, and a door slamming shut.

Two young men walked out of an alleyway. Well, that was what they looked like. Both were demons, one being quite tall for his young age. The only hint of his nonhuman nature were a pair of small, conical horns on his head. He had light blond hair and dark gray eyes.

The other was even taller, and was built like a brick wall, being obtuse and heavy looking. He was more blatantly inhuman, with a jaw that had apparent fangs, a long bony tail, and his right arm having exoskeletal armor, his right hand being a terrible claw.

The kid asked, "Hey, get outta here, we found this place first."

The large one just chuckled, and looked Subaru over, and she felt a vicious headache come on as the demon ruthlessly pried his way through her mind with advanced telepathy.

"Nope, Gen, these guys ain't like us. They're those TSAB weaklings that King Shiryu was talking about the other day."

Gen actually seemed frightened, "TSAB, as in the one that has that white devil in its ranks? Orge, usually these guys only go somewhere if they have a big unit and a lot of allies behind them. We might not be enough to beat em..." Gen had to admit the blue haired one was pretty hot, for a human.

Subaru stepped forward, "You two are under arrest for looting and trespassing. Please come quietly, or I will use force."

The guide whispered to her, "Hello? These guys are demons, I think they prefer the force part."

Orge just chuckled, "That...That's kinda funny! You want us to come quietly. You TSAB guys are a bunch of no-killing pacifists, no wonder you didn't even get involved. And your so called White Devil? Just a human lesbo bitch."

That triggered a dynamic change in Subaru. She glared right at Orge, ignoring Gen for now, for which Gen was glad. Because he suspected if looks could kill, he and Orge would be dead ten times over by now.

Orge just kept laughing, ignoring Subaru's fierce glare. "C'mon, show me what'cha got, little girl."

The guide was quite surprised when Subaru rocketed forward, sending a clenched knuckle duster weapon crashing right into Orge's face, throwing the demon right through a wall and into an abandoned shop.

He climbed out, and smirked, "Hoho, that was way nice. Better than some of the wimps around here I've dealt with. But now I've got your rhythm down. Belkan close combat mage, uses a lot of rushes and attacks full on."

He grinned somewhat more psychotically, "My turn now. Here's my attack comin' at ya!"

He swatted the air in front of him in a downward strike, a dark air taking form around him. At first, it looked like a complete and total miss.

But then an invisible force smashed Subaru into the ground by the back of her head. The guide looked on, considering this.

Orge looked happy when she got back up, "Try again, missy?"

She rushed at him, and he struck the air around him with one hand in an uppercut. An invisible force interrupted Subaru's attack, smashing into her stomach and lifting her into the air.

She gasped out in pain and then Orge swiped at the air again, a force striking at her in midair and she hit one of the walls hard enough to collapse it on her.

Orge began smashing the ground at his feet, blows raining down on the downed Subaru from above.

The guide ran off into a shop, watching the battle. He made a note of Orge's power, deciding to report it later. He knew what it was, and that it was nothing like what Subaru had dealt with in the past.

When she actually got back up, Gen shouted, "T-That's enough, you should lay down and say you surrender! Maybe then we'd just knock you out!"

For now, Subaru ignored the kid. She concentrated on Orge, and the demon began guffawing, "Zehaha, whaddaya think of my Dark Chain? Its called Aether Weight. I'm just gonna let you get beaten down by it and then as you die, you can think of its wonderful power!"

Subaru dusted herself off and said, "Actually, I figured out what it does already, though I am unfamiliar with the terminology."

There was a stunned silence between the fighters and the watchers. Gen whispered, "That should not be possible...how could she figure it out, just getting hit by it a few times..."

Orge looked at her, wide eyed in surprise and shouted, "W-Whaaat! How the hell did you figure out what it did?"

She explained, having noted the movements and the location of the attacks. "Your magic lets you transfer your attacks elsewhere. Attacking through the Aether. Your attack motions matched with what hit me earlier."

Gen looked on, amazed, "You...You figured out his Dark Chain so easily..." The youth then looked at Orge, "I guess its time you use the full power of your Dark Chain."

Orge looked down at him, "Umm, yeah, the full power, yeah, that full power..." In truth, he had never really had to.

Subaru plowed into Orge like a truck, smashing him into the ground, and genuinely wiping that cocky grin off his face, "You are under arrest. Either go quietly, or I'll give you more of the beating you deserve for insulting Nanoha that way."

Orge tried to unleash an Aether Strike from above, and Subaru simply rolled off of her hold on him.

And so Orge's own attack knocked him unconscious.

Subaru called out to the Guide, "You can come out now. The demon is unconscious."

The guide exited the shop area, and looked down at Orge. He had to say, those demons were really scary, having Dark Chain that powerful.

Gen looked horrified, and started to move backward, and he took the opportunity and ran, cursing himself for abandoning his own brother like that. For all he knew, TSAB were people who hated demons...

Subaru bound Orge up and sent a telepathic message up to Hayate, [we got a treasure hunter down here. A demon, and it seems he has previously unknown magic.]

Hayate, having wisely kept her telepathic channels open, responded, [That is interesting. What kind of magic was it?]

[He called it "Dark Chain", and it appears he did not even need a Device to use that to a powerful degree. My Barrier Jacket was up and he still gave me a tough time.]

[That is surprising. Hmm, return with him to base, and I'll question him about his magic.]

Orge was immediately incarcerated, put in a binding spell to prevent his movements, and was sent directly to Hayate. She had been briefed on the situation with the demon by Subaru, and that she had not needed to use spells to defeat him.

But all the same, this magic type he used might become a distinctly troublesome sort. Dark Chain was a term she did not know. Perhaps it was a Lost Logia? Or maybe...could it be the signal they had felt?

Erio and Caro also returned to base with their guide. They had apparently also had a scuffle with someone, but neither wanted to talk about it much. Something about a Shooting Magic that blasted adhesive ooze instead of a proper blast.

Hayate glared down at Orge, "You attacked my companions with your magic, a type we have never seen before. Now, tell us what sort of power that is."

Erio was walking by the interrogation room, and he winced at how scary Hayate seemed. She had also been told that Orge insulted Nanoha in a very foul way, hence her current more frightening aura. In TSAB, it was generally not a good idea to insult someone's friends.

Especially not when you beat up someone's friends on top of that. Well, it was not a good idea anywhere, but especially not there, where someone's friend could potentially blast the living daylights out of you.

Orge was surprisingly cooperative, "The Dark Chain. What, you TSAB backwater idiots never heard of it? Its a Lost Logia fragment, we really don't know where it came from earlier, but I've seen humans in the same business as me usin' it. You better watch out, though, some of those Dark Chain have really freaky powers."

Hayate asked, now managing to calm down a little bit, "Powers? What do you mean? They grant magic to people?" She had heard of some Lost Logia granting powers to people, but to so many, and from its mere fragments...that was potentially a very frightening Logia.

Orge even added, "Anyone who wears one gets the power it confers."

Hayate decided to experiment and took off Orge's necklace, and put it on. She felt an unearthly chill, a vague feel like she had touched something dark, but then it was gone. She shouted to Erio outside, "Sorry, but I'm gonna test something! Put up your Barrier Jacket!"

Erio looked confused. He had not heard anything she said, was she motioning toward him? What was she doing? Why was she looking like she was gonna try to throw a punch? Was she gonna punch Orge?

She punched open air and thought that maybe only the blackhearted could use a Dark Chain. It looked like nothing happened.

But then Erio felt a punch hit him in the forehead that sent him backward into a wall. He got back up and looked around, spooked. Was there really a ghost in here? He looked around, trying to find the specter that had hit him.

Hayate took it back off, and put it down on a table, "You have been oddly helpful...for someone who seems to think lowly of the TSAB."

Orge smirked, "You public servants beat me, so of course I'm gonna be a little more respectful. Its basic demonic law. When someone whups your ass, you respect them."

Hayate supposed a society of violence and force like the demon race would only survive if they had some rules of honorable combat and such. Even a brute like Orge was being a little helpful now.

But now...she would need to watch out for more people who were capable of using those weird powers. Also, she would need to ask someone from this area if they knew about the Chains. She remembered General Snowe, and she left the interrogation room to ask Vita and Signum to inquire about the General.

General Snowe sneezed, and looked around somewhat bashfully at the other generals in the meeting. "Ahah, so sorry about that, guys. I suppose someone was talking about me."

Among the generals, Snowe was a true oddity. His uniform was blank white, absolutely no other colors on him. It matched his hair, or so he said.

Hopefully Hayate, he thought with a little smile. Oh yes, hot Hayate and her hot all-girl squadron. He remembered trying to sneak a peak into that squad's locker room...he had to wonder if some of the prints from the thrown shoes were still there.

The other generals got back to their meeting, seeing that their fellow had his head firmly planted in the clouds. It was plain as day that none of them much respected General Snowe, and many of them did not address him very respectfully.

One whispered, thinking Snowe could not hear, "What a disgrace. A general and he still acts like a child..."

Snowe smiled a little at the knowledge he was the only one who could cast magic amongst these moldy old goats. He really hoped he never grew old. These generals were just a group of people whose whole mission in life seemed to be antagonizing one another and scheming without end. Not that they would ever act on any of those schemes.

As one of the generals went to get some water for refreshment, Snowe motioned with one finger and the water which was supposed to be going into that man's cup flowed into Snowe's instead.

The young man chuckled to himself, "Isn't magic a wonderful thing?"

That general turned red with fury and glared at Snowe, "Your glib behavior does you no favors, General Snowe. Do try to remember to have _some _dignity, and maybe this counsel will respect you."

Snowe could not care less. He was way too lazy to care about what a few close minded old idiots thought about him. After all, he was here for a reason, and they were not in that reason.

Technically, he could make them leave him alone, but that would not make things any easier for him. He loved peace and love! Why oh why could there not be more lovely women in this counsel?

He drank his water. He also always had a love for water. It was fluid and always changing, never in one state for too long. He especially liked cold water, it reminded him of better days. So, he altered his water to be as cold as possible.

He sipped it, thinking on all the wonderful girls working for TSAB.

As the meeting ended, he got up and was immediately accosted by one of the older generals, "Snowe, I know that you do not take the meetings very seriously, but if you do not pull it together, you may be completely ostracized! Did...something happen? Are you repressing some sort of hurt behind this front?"

Snowe shook his head, "Nah, hmm, I'll try and get it back together. Don't you worry, I won't let your care for me be made worthless."

This old man, he remembered now, was the guy who helped him rise through the ranks. Old Man Zeltman. As far as Snowe knew, the poor old guy lost his family a while back in an attack by terrorists, so Snowe pitied him, despite the fact Zeltman insisted on not being pitied.

Snowe felt likewise about his own past. Such was why he really felt like a kindred soul to that old man. It would have been easy for the old man to fall into Snowe's behaviors. But even he had his own reasons for acting this way.

And as the young general left, he ran right into one of Hayate's group of friends. As he thought, that bust and stoic face could only be Signum. At her side was cute little Vita, but Snowe was in no mood today for being hit with a hammer, so he did not comment on her.

He smiled widely, "Why hello lovely Signum, as usual, your uniform looks heavenly on you."

She clenched one hand slightly. She really did not much like dealing with this guy. He barely treated his important position with any respect. He preferred ogling girls like a young boy.

"...This is not the time for that, General. I have come here to ask a question of you. Are you, or are you not Snowe Pallordia? And what do you know of any magical artifacts in Pallordia?"

He frowned slightly at that question and adjusted his raccoon skin fur hat, "Hmm, so, you are asking me if I am the son of King Pallordia?" Such big questions, and why was Hayate not asking them herself? Could it be she was away on a mission...to Pallordia, perhaps?

Signum gripped one hand more tightly, "Yes. Didn't I just finish asking you that?"

Vita grit her teeth. Snowe knew more than he let on, but he insisted on doing this almost every single time someone tried to ask him something.

Snowe shrugged his shoulders and offered a big smile, "...I really cannot know! I do not know who my parents are. If you look through my file, you would see that. While I am a Pallordian, that doesn't mean I know more about this situation than anyone else. I am just as confused and dismayed about this turn of events as you most likely are. As far as magical artifacts..." He looked up at the ceiling, "There was that Sword of Dark Light I remember hearing about."

He would definitely not be made to give out information. Those people were going into his home land and probably sifting through Bradley's stuff, and they expected him to play nice and say everything. What kind of plot would that create?

Signum looked down, "I am...sorry for prodding into your familial affairs, and I am certain we already know about the Sword of Dark Light." In truth, she knew it was incredibly bad taste and also dishonorable to poke through a man's past when his homeland was in such a state.

Vita looked up at Signum, surprised, "But...Signum, this guy is so obviously hiding something!" Oh, how she wanted to get the answers out of him, especially after that stunt he pulled a while back.

The older looking Wolkenritter just glared down and said, "Yes, but Snowe is also a General. We cannot force him to tell us anything." And they also had to respect Snowe's authority.

Both left a smiling Snowe, and he relished the opportunity to ogle their behinds. Vita was sorely tempted to crush that smiling idiot with her hammer for his perversions, but Signum put one hand on her shoulder. "Trust me, he's not worth it."

A/N: And we're done with the third chapter. The fourth is a lot more calm than the last two, I know some people might not like a story that is all battles.


End file.
